(87954) Tomkaye Main-belt Asteroid

Discovered on 2 October 2000 by C. W. Juels at Fountain Hills.

Tom Kaye (b. 1957) is a businessman and amateur astronomer. In Mar. 2000 he collaborated with others to detect a previously discovered extrasolar planet around the star τ Boo using the doppler shift method with a 0.4-m telescope and home-built spectrograph. The name was suggested by M. Trueblood.Naming citation (20050125/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL

Where Tomkaye is today

MercuryVenusEarthEarthMarsMarsTomkayeTomkaye

Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Tomkaye is 2.65 au from the Sun and 2.95 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.

Facts

Number87954
Provisional designation2000 TK
Orbit classMain-belt Asteroid
Rotation period67.9 hours
Absolute magnitude (H)14.75
Orbital period4.18 years
Semi-major axis2.60 au
Perihelion – aphelion2.12 – 3.07 au
Eccentricity0.183
Inclination12.0°
Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID)1.16 au

Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.

Also named after someone called Tom

Also discovered on 2 October 2000

More named asteroids discovered by C. W. Juels